The field of the invention is in the design of devices for the acquisition, storage and transmission of multiple physiological parameters from human subjects to be monitored in hospitals, clinics, doctor""s offices as well as in remote locations (home environment, work place, recreational activity, etc.) or unnatural environments (under-water, outer space, etc.).
The conventional acquisition of a human electrocardiogram (ECG) requires the recording of the time dependent fluctuations in the cardiac electrical activation from 12 different angles on the human torso (6 in the frontal plane and 6 in the horizontal plane) the so-called 12 lead ECG. Classically, this procedure involves the placement on the human body of at least 10 electrodes at various predefined anatomical locations.
Deviation from the predefined, worldwide, conventional localization of these electrodes may result in the acquisition of false data, possibly leading to misinterpretation and misdiagnosis. Even in the hospital or clinic environment, the correct and stable placement of the ECG electrodes, specifically the xe2x80x9cchest leadsxe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9cV leadsxe2x80x9d is often problematic, unless one applies six adhesive electrodes on the patient""s chest. This is an impractical method in many circumstances due mainly to financial and patient inconvenience considerations. This problem is amplified in the attempts to record a full diagnostic 12 lead ECG in a remote location since the correct positioning of the electrodes by the examinee himself or by available laymen bystanders (family members, friends, etc.) is usually difficult and unreliable and therefore impractical.
To overcome this problem and to allow for the accurate acquisition of a 12 lead ECG in the ambulatory environment, various devices were conceived. Such devices include various forms of vests, girdles, adhesive and non-adhesive patches and other devices with incorporated electrodes allowing for the placement of the ECG electrodes on the patient""s chest. However, most of these devices are cumbersome to use and have therefore not been universally accepted. Moreover, these devices do not lend themselves to the integration of other sensors and instrumentation for the simultaneous acquisition of other important physiological data (blood pressure, SpO2, etc.), such data being very useful for the purpose of ambulatory telemedical follow-up of patients in their own environment (home, workplace, recreational activity, etc).
The invention proposes to integrate a multitude of sensors and measuring devices in a garment in the form of a glove or sleeve for repeated continuous and simultaneous assessment of various physiological data such as ECG, noninvasive blood pressure (NIBP), blood oxygen saturation (SpO2), skin resistance, motion analysis, an electronic stethoscope, etc. An important advantage of the glove or sleeve is that it provides accurate, repeatable and conventional placement or localization of the ECG electrodes (specifically for the recording of the chest or V leads) by positioning the left arm of patient in a natural and very comfortable manner on the chest. Moreover, the glove or sleeve provides a means for simultaneous recording, storage and transmission of a multitude of other physiological data without the need for difficult manipulations. Furthermore, the incorporation of various measuring tools or instruments into one device, i.e. glove or sleeve, allows for the reciprocal calibration and easy acquisition of important, integrated, physiological data, a feature presently almost unavailable in the ambulatory environment (e.g. beat to beat NIBP changes, integration of: heart rate, blood pressure, skin resistance and other parameters for the assessment of autonomic balance, etc.).
Thus, it is an object of the invention to provide a system and method for repeatably and accurately positioning physiological sensors on a patient.
Another object is to provide a glove or sleeve with medical instrumentation and a protocol to position the glove or sleeve and thus the instrumentation on a patient.
These and other objects, advantages and features will be set forth in the description which follows.